In his late work (De venatione sapientiae), Cusanus unfolded basic ideas of his brilliant theology. After a long period, this ingenious teaching became clearly recognizable especially in our time. Forward with his face to the back, modern scientific theory adopts nowadays a course to which Cusanus had already pointed centuries ago. Modern thought revolves with unexpected precision and unexpected mysteriousness around two issues of his doctrine of wisdom: (i) The possibility-of-being-made is not a figment of the human brain by which it organizes one's thoughts, but a fundamental and indispensable manifestation of reality. (ii) The possibility-of-being-made refers to something antecedent by which both the feasibility and the being-made get their common shape. This ultimate ground embodies the omnipotent oneness in the form of an infinite fund in which the cause of all reality and of all possibility is timelessly stored. Comparisons with the quantum ontology and the theory of quantum gravity impose themselves.
Table of Contents
I. Introduction
II. About the possibility-of-being-made
A. The hunting ground shown by Cusanus
B. There is still large quarry
III. What can we know about God?
A. The faceless oneness
B. A maximally unknown miraculous number
IV. On the origin of the possibility-of-being-made
A. Creation of feasibility
B. Generalized quantum ontology
V. There is no plurality of infinity
A. Infinity and oneness
B. About the heaven of infinities
VI. Conclusion
A. Consistent quantum theory
B. The mysterious number Ω
C. Infinite sets
Research Objectives and Key Themes
This paper aims to bridge the gap between historical theological concepts, specifically the teachings of Nicholas of Cusa (Cusanus), and modern scientific developments in quantum ontology and quantum gravity. The central research question explores whether Cusanus's speculative "hunt for wisdom" regarding the origins of reality remains a relevant framework for interpreting the fundamentally probabilistic and indeterminate nature of the universe as revealed by contemporary physics.
- Theological and philosophical re-evaluation of Cusanus's doctrine of "possibility-of-being-made."
- Mechanistic vs. theological worldviews regarding the origin and nature of existence.
- Application of quantum mechanical concepts (decoherence, state vectors) to theological speculation.
- Epistemological limitations of human knowledge, illustrated by Chaitin’s number Ω and infinite sets.
- Conceptual synthesis of an "eternal, timeless source" of reality with modern scientific notions of emergent spacetime.
Excerpt from the Publication
B. A maximally unknown miraculous number
Indeed, the omnipotent one is an odd construction. On the one hand, it is some kind of divine knowledge, the cause of the possibility-of-being-made and of all thoughts by which phenomena become understandable. On the other hand we must admit that the oneness itself is neither understandable nor rooted in this world. Hence, our thoughts about the ultimate truths peter out. We must recognize: The last answers, which our heart desires so much, cannot reach us in principle. Therefore, Cusanus preached the learned ignorance, which plays an essential role in his philosophy.
This central idea of his teachings can be well illustrated by an unusual, irrational number Ω, which is precisely defined, but, nevertheless, not computable. The ominous Chaitin number Ω denotes the probability that a randomly generated string of bits proves to be a program that runs on a computer and eventually halts after a finite time. As the halting problem cannot always be decided in advance, this number is fundamentally not countable. Moreover, Ω is not only maximally uncomputable, but also maximally unknowable and maximally random (some further information is compiled in Appendix B). What is most interesting for our purpose: Chaitin’s number Ω ”is also the diamond-hard distilled and crystallized essence of mathematical truth.” It is amazing: The answer to every mathematical question is written down in omega, even though, we basically cannot distill the universal mathematical wisdom from Ω. Like a cabalistic number, the digits of Ω encode the secrets of the whole mathematical universe. Unfortunately, this digit sequence is always uncomputable so that we finally know nothing more about Ω than its maximal indefiniteness (its maximal randomness). Our talking about Ω is nothing more than learned ignorance. Only God knows whether a given randomly generated computer program will eventually halt or not. For Him, Ω is both palpable and understandable, just as the sum of all possible mathematical theorems.
Summary of Chapters
I. Introduction: This chapter introduces Nicholas of Cusa and his theological work, highlighting the transition from medieval metaphysics to the mechanistic materialism that largely abandoned theological inquiry.
II. About the possibility-of-being-made: This section explores the fundamental basis of Cusanus’s wisdom, arguing that the "possibility-of-being-made" is an indispensable manifestation of reality that precedes existence.
III. What can we know about God?: This chapter investigates the nature of divine oneness and the limits of human cognition, framing "learned ignorance" as the necessary prerequisite for understanding ultimate truths.
IV. On the origin of the possibility-of-being-made: Here, the author connects the divine origin of forms with modern theoretical physics, suggesting that the emergence of tangible facts requires a transcendental, timeless principle.
V. There is no plurality of infinity: This chapter addresses the uniqueness of eternity in Cusanus's thought, contrasting it with modern set theory's hierarchy of infinities.
VI. Conclusion: The conclusion synthesizes the findings, arguing that modern physics, despite its mechanistic origins, approaches a view of reality that is surprisingly consistent with the inspired theology of Cusanus.
Keywords
Cusanus, Wisdom, Possibility-of-being-made, Omnipotent oneness, Quantum ontology, Quantum gravity, Infinite sets, Chaitin’s number, Theology, Mechanistic philosophy, Metaphysics, Learned ignorance, Hilbert space, Spacetime, Decoherence.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the core subject of this paper?
The paper examines the theological concepts developed by Nicholas of Cusa, specifically his "pursuit of wisdom," and interprets them through the lens of modern scientific theories, such as quantum ontology and quantum gravity.
What are the primary thematic fields covered?
The work covers intersections between philosophy, theology, and theoretical physics, focusing on the nature of reality, the origin of possibilities, and the limits of human understanding.
What is the central research goal?
The goal is to determine if the fundamental ontological problems posed by Cusanus remain relevant and find a modern "scientific" counterpart in the study of quantum universes and fundamental physical laws.
Which scientific methods are primarily utilized?
The paper utilizes a comparative analysis between historical theological texts and formal models from theoretical physics, including quantum mechanics, density matrices, and set-theoretical definitions of infinity.
What is the main focus of the middle section?
The middle chapters focus on the "possibility-of-being-made" as a bridge between the divine mind and the physical world, utilizing concepts like the "learned ignorance" and mathematical notions of uncomputability.
What characterizes the key terminology of this work?
The paper is characterized by terms that bridge ancient and modern thought, such as "omnipotent oneness," "quantum ontology," "incompressible randomness," and "transcendental principles."
How does the author explain the concept of Chaitin’s number Ω in relation to theology?
The author uses Ω as a mathematical illustration of "learned ignorance," arguing that since Ω is precisely defined but uncomputable, it parallels the hidden nature of God—palpable to the Divine but unknowable in its entirety to humans.
Does the author claim that science has become theological?
No, the author suggests that while science is not inherently theological, its findings regarding the emergence of reality and the nature of the quantum universe are increasingly consistent with theological visions, warranting a reconsidered appreciation of Cusanus.
- Quote paper
- Peter Dr. Kleinert (Author), 2011, Pursuit of Wisdom and Quantum Ontology, Munich, GRIN Verlag, https://www.hausarbeiten.de/document/179169
